Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Roger Zelazny wrote many popular and award-winning books during his long and distinguished writing career (e.g., "Lord of Light" and "Madwand.") Truth be told, though, I didn't care for most of them. They seem too esoteric and not particularly interesting to me. Ah, but then there's the Amber series. Now that's a different story! If I told you that this is the best series of books that I've ever read (and I've read thousands of books), would you believe me? Probably not. But it's true. Zelazny captured lightning in a bottle when he wrote these 10 books--I only wish there were a hundred! The 10 books of the Chronicles of Amber (collected here at last in a single volume!) are divided into two separate, interlocked series. The first tells the adventures of Corwin, Prince of Amber; the second, those of his son Merlin. If you twisted my arm, I'd say that the first series is better than the second. But read them yourself and you can decide. Amber is one of the most intricate, original, and fascinating fantasy worlds you will ever find outside of Tolkien. It is a world of magic, science, illusions, and reality. The basic principle is that the universe consists of an infinite number of parallel worlds, all of which are echoes and reflections (called Shadows) of the one true city of Amber. The people, cultures, traditions, histories, even the physics of those Shadows exist in a multitude of varying degrees. Whatever kind of world or time or place you're looking for, it exists somewhere in Shadow. (Earth as we know it, for example, is merely one Shadow.) The only people who can move freely throughout those Shadows are the Princes and Princesses of Amber, the Royal blood of the ruling family; a large collection of siblings of various ages and dispositions who find it very hard to get along. That is where the brilliance of the Amber series comes in: the endless struggles, alliances, betrayals, and machinations of this very driven and political family who all want to gain control of Amber. Clausewitz would be proud of the ruthless cunning displayed by this clan. Their battles and adventures make for incredible reading. I'm not going to try to describe the plots of the books to you. Part of the joy of this series is the fascination of discovery. I return to these books every few years and read them again with joy and awe. I can think of no other group of books that I would recommend so highly to you. They are to be read and cherished, again and again. Buy a copy today!